Sambhali Trust

Sambhali Trust is a nonprofit organisation based in Jodhpur, India. Founded in 2007, the organisation aims to empower Dalit women and children in Rajasthan through educational programs, vocational training, and social services.

I got in touch a year prior to see if there was any way I could use my skill set to give a voice to those without. Over 3 weeks we ventured from Jodhpur where the boarding homes and 4 schools are located to a small village called Setrawa and finally on to Jalsamer to capture another 4 schools.

The whole process was eye opening for me as a western foreigner, the highs and the lows of meeting so many wonderful people and their stories. Sambhali is a fantastic community who have faced their fair share of pushback. I was told a story when they were setting up one of the schools in Jalsamer where the people are highly superstitious. A rumour was spread that the school had a ghost so the children and ladies stopped going until the school location was moved. As we drove down a street one of the Sambhali helpers pointed to some children who were picking up trash for money. She told me they used to attend the school until the rumour.

I will do a full write up and film on this project as over the course of the next few years we will be working back and forth with many more films.

Equipment used was minimal run and gun set up. Sony A7Siii with Sony glass, DJI gimbal (Which broke!) and Air 2 S drone only natural lighting, edited in DaVinci Resolve.